UPDATE ON NEW HAVEN OVERDOSES
New Haven police have been swarming the city’s green and searching people’s homes for drugs in an effort to prevent more overdoses from a batch of synthetic marijuana. Nearly 100 people were hospitalized in a 36-hour period. City Police Chief Anthony Campbell says increased patrols have been on the Green, where most of the overdoses occurred Wednesday. Campbell said officers are executing search warrants in an effort to get all the bad “K2” off the streets. Campbell said it appears one of three suspects who were arrested was giving the drug away for free in an effort to get people hooked. Those who did take the drug often returned for more doses, once released from medical care, according to New Haven E-M-S Director, Doctor Sandy Bogucki. Mayor Toni Harp says plans are being finalized for President Trump’s drug czar nominee, Jim Carroll, to visit New Haven on Monday.
INTENTIONAL FIRE IN NORWICH
A fire classified as intentional is being investigated by Norwich police. It broke out around 3 this morning in an apartment building at 20 Stanley Place. No injuries reported , damage was minimal. Police say the fire was not accidental, but it’s not known if it’ll be classified as arson. Contact city police with any information.
EAST HAMPTON MOTORCYCLE FATAL
An East Hampton motorcyclist is killed just after one this morning. State police say 27-year old Evan Basso struck a police cruiser from the town of Portland at the intersection of Routes 66 and 151 and Depot Hill Road in East Hampton, as the cruiser was attempting to make a left turn. Basso was ejected from his motorcycle and later pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the cruiser, 48-year old James Capello of Portland, was taken to Middlesex Hospital for non life-threatening injuries. State police are investigating.
ALLEDGED HUMAN-TRAFFICKER MAY ADMIT GUILT
DANBURY, Conn. (AP) – A Danbury man charged with recruiting young intellectually disabled and mentally ill men into a human trafficking ring and providing them to wealthy clients for sex has said he’s willing to plead guilty. Robert King told a judge Wednesday that he would plead guilty in exchange for a 4 1/2-year prison sentence. Authorities say the 52-year-old King would ply the victims with drugs and then force them into prostitution when they incurred heavy debts. He’s charged with trafficking in persons, promoting prostitution and tampering with a witness. Plea negotiations appeared to have broken down before King spoke over his attorney in court and said he would take a deal. King faced up to 25 years in prison if convicted. He is due back in court Aug. 22. New London-Waterford Speedbowl owner Bruce Bemer has also been charged with being a part of the sex-trafficking ring.
INFANT GIRL LEFT IN CAR AT CASINO
LINCOLN, R.I. (AP) – Police say a 3-month-old girl was left alone in a running vehicle outside a Rhode Island casino for about 90 minutes while her mother was inside. Lincoln police say an officer at the Twin River Casino was informed by security at about 10 a.m. Wednesday that a child had been left alone in a parked vehicle. Authorities found the girl inside a running vehicle with a window down. The mother, identified as 26-year-old Halston Borglund, came out of the casino and said she left the child alone for just a few minutes while she ran inside to retrieve keys. Casino security says she actually entered at 8:30 a.m. She was charged with cruelty or neglect of a child. The girl was checked out at a hospital and taken into state care.
SHARK ATTACK CLOSES CAPE COD BEACH
A Massachusetts beach where a New York man was attacked by a shark this week will be closed to swimmers at least through Friday. Town officials in Truro have put up signs saying, “Danger, No Swimming.” Town manager Rae Ann Palmer says several shark sightings were reported Thursday. The area is a feeding ground for seals, which draw sharks. Authorities regularly caution people to avoid the water whenever seals are present. Victim William Lytton, of Scarsdale, New York, staggered to shore Wednesday and was airlifted to a Boston hospital for treatment of deep puncture wounds to his torso and leg. Beachgoer Andrea Worthington, of Schenectady, New York, says she and her husband were swimming just a few hours before the attack but left the water when they saw seals.
